Mason Holgate admits he is not pleased with how his start to life at Southampton has gone with the Everton defender struggling for game time since leaving the Premier League outfit on loan.
A spell on the South Coast was supposed to light a fire under Mason Holgate’s career. Instead, however, the enthusiasm which greeted his arrival has been extinguished like a candle in the wind, the Everton loanee starting only four games so far in England’s second tier.
And while Holgate admits he is enjoying honing his talents under Russell Martin – a coach who’s possession principles would almost make Pep Guardiola look like Sam Allardyce – his lack of game time is understandably a source of some frustration.
Only four starts since Everton exit
“It’s difficult as a defender to come in and out of the team,” Holgate tells the Daily Echo.
“All you can do is keep pushing the boys and make sure you are prepared for when that chance comes. There are so many games in the Championship that everyone is going to get their chance to play.”
“(My start at Southampton) was disappointing. I have such high expectations for myself. I didn’t have a full pre-season, which isn’t an excuse, but I was a yard or two off it.”
Things are, at least, looking up for the long-serving Everton man. Holgate returned to Martin’s XI over the weekend, and produced his finest Southampton performance yet, a Man of the Match display in the late 2-1 win over fellow promotion chasers West Brom.
“I am only going to get better from being around the boys and training every day. In each performance, I have got better,” Holgate adds.
“More so, as a defender, you need a run of games to be judged off. It’s hard to come in and have the odd game.
“All I can do is keep pushing. Hopefully, when I get my chances I can stay in the team. That’s what the whole team need to do, not just myself.
“The team only get better when players come in and make the manager ask questions. That’s what a good squad is about. That is what we need to be over the course of the season.”
A turning point for Mason Holgate at Southampton?
Come next summer, Holgate will have just 12 months left on his Everton contract. In truth, it would be a surprise if he represented The Toffees again, and you can say the same of another Premier League misfit looking to kick-start his career at St Mary’s; Newcastle United’s Ryan Fraser.
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